The Boy Who Lived Take Two
by Wyrmskyld
Summary: A take on the old chesnut of Sirius and Remus raising Harry. COMPLETED. Sequel coming soon!
1. Awakenings

_Right, so… yet another fic. See if you can guess who the people are in this first chapter! You'll know most of them, but not all. If you know them, they belong to JKR. Otherwise, they're figments of my imagination._

It was a small, neat, whitewashed cottage, out by the edge of a moor. A tidy, flourishing garden surrounded the house, filling the air with the sharp scents of lavender and rosemary, and the earthy tang from the vegetable patch. It looked unearthly out in the middle of nowhere, the full moon and an autumn frost accenting the scene with silver gilt. The hour was 4 AM, when the entire world seems deserted and still, as if holding its breath while the moon sets.

The moment the moon sank below the horizon, the screams began.

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At the same moment, several hundred miles away, a boy bolted upright in his bed, nearly smacking his forehead against the wall. Panting hard, he fumbled in the darkness for his glasses, setting them firmly on his nose. Not that it did any good. The cupboard that served him for a room was still pitch black, and even had it not been, the hot tears running down his cheeks would have blinded him. Silent tears. Even at five years old, he knew better than to cry out for comfort that wouldn't be forthcoming. All that sobs produced was anger.

Outside, an old woman looked sadly at the boy's house, then went home to feed her cats.

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Not so very far from the five year old's neighborhood, an elegant mansion was rocked with sounds of conflict. A drunken roar, the tinkle of breaking glass, thwack of flesh hitting flesh, an hour of silence punctuated by the whimpering of an infant. Inebriated snores, angry sniffles, drawers being stealthily opened and closed. The rising sun cast a benevolent eye on the very pregnant woman slipping out the door, weighed down with luggage, and a pair of sleeping toddlers. The heavy veil across her face did little to hide the rapidly darkening bruise across her cheekbone, although it did disguise the unkempt appearance of her dark hair. She held her wand out imperiously.

The man left sleeping on the floor inside didn't stir as his family got on the Knight Bus.

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Meanwhile, on an island surrounded by soul-sucking guards, an innocent man laughed.

_Wow. That chapter was surprisingly short given how much I tried to say. So, all the major characters have been introduced! What do you think? _


	2. A New Day

**_This chapter contains some extremely mild slash. If you choose to read it anyway and are offended, get a life you freak. And WHEEE! I have reviewers!  
_**

_**Sunny Moonlight:** Yes, yes, yes! You win a cookie! You got all the chars right. And her full name is Arabella Figg, in case you care—although she's not really gonna show up much. She was only in that one scene. You'll learn more about the pregnant woman in this chapter. And this is a 'Sirius and Remus raise Harry' story. Whoo!_

_**Becky Silver Black:** I'm glad you liked it! Here's your update! And look! You get a character named after you! Err… not really. Aidan's actually one of my RP characters who's getting a nod here. And in 'real life,' he teaches Muggle Studies rather than being a lawyer. Thank heavens._

_**Thanks to the sublime Reyna for naming the abusive hubby! And quick, someone get me a thesaurus so I can come up with more superlatives for her. :P**_

_**Chapter edited for a mistake. **_

In the cottage on the moor, a sunbeam crept stealthily across the floor. Motes of dust dancing in the shaft of light gave it a hazy golden look as it inched its way across the battered old couch. Then, at precisely forty two minutes after nine, it stabbed the eyes of the blanket-obscured form on the sofa, eliciting a groan and a mumbled curse. Blinking honey-colored eyes turned away from the sunbeam, focusing inevitably on a picture perched on the end table.

For the fifty-second time in the past four years, Remus Lupin wondered why he still kept that picture. For the fifty-second time, he considered throwing it into the fire or out the window. And, for the fifty-second time, he found himself unable to do so, although he wasn't sure whether it was the pain and exhaustion of his transformation that held him back, or the reluctance to give up the memories. It had become a ritual over the years, to stare at that picture while he tried to find strength to get up and treat his self-inflicted injuries. Injuries so painful that, combined with the weariness of transformation, always seemed to prevent him from making it to the bed after a full moon. So he slept on the couch, and awoke to the photograph that reminded him of everything he'd lost.

From left to right… Peter, dead. James, dead. Lily, dead. Sirius, dead to Remus… At this point in the litany, an annoying little mental voice always whispered '_but he's not dead. And you don't really think he did it, do you?_' That voice spoke to Remus often. It was very hard to ignore… But back to the repeitition. The mantra of a lonely werewolf. Peter, dead. James, dead. Lily, dead. Sirius, traitor, should be dead. Aurora, married with children and better things to do than worry about some depressed loser she went to school with, even if she had asked him to be the godfather to the twins. The nagging voice chimed in again—'_Rory wouldn't abandon you. You know there's something wrong if she hasn't been answering your owls._' Remus ignored the voice again, with some effort and went back to his study of the picture. Only one person left. In the center, sitting on a miniature broomstick. Harry, living with muggles, because no sane person would give a child into the custody of a bachelor werewolf.

The familiar feeling of self-loathing gave him the strength to roll over and stare at the faded pattern of the couch's upholstery rather than the painful photograph. Four years ago, on a morning like this, he'd wake up in bed, bandaged and cared for, held safe and warm in the arms of his beloved. Remus closed his eyes against the prickling of tears, pushing away the thoughts of blame and guilt, and relived the memory.

_Waking slowly, only weariness and a few stinging scratches to remind him of the previous night. The feeling of being cradled against a strong chest, inhaling the aromas of vanilla, spice, and the sharp musky scent of an athletic man. Opening his eyes to see fair skin decorated with a lacework of black silk hair, looking up to perfect smiling lips, further up to tarnished silver eyes. Such easy eyes to drown in. No one knew better than Remus, who had been lost in them since they'd first met. The perfect lips opened, and…_

Remus screamed as he reached out to touch his vision and discovered a broken left wrist. Gasping in pain, he sat slowly, cradling his arm to him. Good thing it was his left one, or he'd have been forced to go to St. Mungo's to get it mended. Rory used to come by and check on him after the full moon, but about a year ago she'd stopped coming, sending excuses by owl at first, and then none at all. She'd even stopped answering his owls. Sighing, Remus stood and went off to find his wand and some bandages.

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The small boy had been awakened at dawn by screeching and hammering at his door. Crawling out of the cupboard, he was set to watching the bacon for breakfast while his aunt went to wake her son, far more gently than she had roused Harry, the unwanted nephew. It was awkward having to stand on a chair to reach the stove, but the boy managed. He always managed.

After plating up the bacon and toast, he smiled to himself. Tomorrow was Monday, and his class was taking a trip to the London Zoo. Nervously, the boy tried to flatten his hair, not wanting his aunt and uncle to find a reason to call off the much-anticipated trip. He just had to be perfect for this one day…

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The pregnant woman collapsed heavily onto a bench across the street from the Leaky Cauldron. Hard to believe it wasn't even noon. Her swollen ankles throbbed, and every movement sent lances of pain through her lower back. And she was convinced her abdomen was bruised from the inside out by the angry punches and kicks coming from her womb. Not to mention the two pathetically weary little boys leaning against her, too tired to even whine anymore.

It had been worthwhile, though. A visit to St. Mungo's revealed that she'd been under the confundus charm for the better part of three years, probably refreshed on a weekly basis by one Mr. Talbot Silvanus. The bastard. Then a quick trip to Gringotts barred him from access to her bank vault, and the very nice goblin she talked to—Griphook, his name was—gave her his word that he'd make sure it was enforced. It was rounded off with a visit to her father's old lawyer, Aidan Silver, to begin divorce proceedings. And to get her name changed back to her maiden name. Aurora Grey.

The one problem was where to go now. She really didn't want to see Talbot again, which cut out home and the Leaky Cauldron. There had to be somewhere for the boys to sleep. Well… somewhere better than the bench. Rome was already asleep, nestled close to her, and Raul's head was nodding. Wrapping an arm around each of them, Rory leaned back, closing her eyes and trying to think. Unbidden, a vision came up of the first day her friends had met Talbot.

_Talbot had left to go to work. Harry wasn't feeling well so James and Lily had taken him home. Peter hadn't shown at all, just sent an owl saying his mum was ill. Rory had been tidying up from dinner, only to turn around and find Sirius and Remus looking at her solemnly, standing in identical stubborn poses. "What? I haven't seen you two looking so grim since you made the decision to come out of the closet."_

_They exchanged one of those looks. The looks that Rory had labeled 'married couple' looks, because a simple glance could somehow convey volumes of information. Remus nodded slightly, and his lover turned to frown at Rory. "What the hell do you see in that prick?"_

_Rory scowled at the taller of the two men, tarnished silver eyes meeting tarnished silver. "Sirius Black. Just because you're my cousin—Second cousin, at that. Twice removed, no less—Doesn't give you the right to dictate who I will and will not date."_

"_We're not… dammit, Rory, he just gives me a bad vibe. And you're the closest thing to a little sister I have…" Sirius's hands opened and closed, as if he was groping for the words to express his thoughts. Remus laid a scarred hand on one of the long elegant ones and picked up the train of thought. "There's just something about him that doesn't ring true, and we don't want you to be hurt. We're not going to tell you no, because that never works, just… remember that our door is always open if you need us, okay?"_

The pleading expression in Remus's honey-gold eyes had stuck with her, although she'd never expected to take him up on that offer. Gathering up the twins and her bag, Rory walked over to the public floo, paying a knut for Floo powder and calling out an address before stepping into the leaping green flames.

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On the island, surrounded by dementors, Sirius Black laughed.

**_Ah, another chapter. Aren't you all thrilled? What will happen next? Will Remus find his wand? Will Harry get to go to the zoo? Where is Rory going? And will Sirius ever do anything besides laugh? Only the Wyrm knows. Oh, and the Shadow. Because he knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men. _**

_**And don't worry, Sirius fans. I promise he won't be in Azkaban forever. **_


	3. Anticipation

_**Eheheh… Wyrm hates writing dialogue. But…. Apparently people have to, you know, -talk- to each other sometimes. So, here's the next lovely chapter! **_

_**Thanks to my reviewers! You lovelies are the reason I keep writing! **_

_**Sunny Moonlight: **I wouldn't be that evil to Remus. I lurve him. And don't worry, Sirius will be out of there soon!_

_**Becky Silver Black: **Is this soon enough? I would've been faster, but writing dialogue slows me down. I should make all my characters mute. It would solve so many problems._

_**Reyna the Fantabulous: **Like BUNNIES! Bunnies, I say!_

**_And… erm… nothing here belongs to me, except Rory, Romulus, Raul, and Talbot. Which I suppose means over half the characters belong to me. Ah, well. However, if anyone wants Talbot, he's free to a bad home. _**

Healed, showered, and bandaged, Remus pulled on an old sweater against the chill. He needed to fix the furnace, but that cost more money than he had at the moment. Easier to just bundle up until Friday, when his paycheck came. Not that it was much of a paycheck, but better than nothing. Shivering slightly, the werewolf went into the kitchen to make a pot of tea.

The teapot had just started to whistle when the fire turned green. Shocked, he automatically reached for his wand, pausing when he recognized the head of chocolate brown hair. The wand was forgotten completely when the bruised face came into view. "Rory! What happened to you?"

"You were right about Talbot." The pregnant woman smiled painfully as she was helped out of the fireplace, then handed one sleeping boy to her friend. Remus cradled his godson close, then helped Rory to the couch, shocked at her bedraggled appearance.

"Talbot… your husband… did this?" At her nod, Remus growled. Rory might claim to be an only child, but the marauders had decided their first year that she needed brothers to protect her, and immediately nominated themselves to the position. Even eight years out of school, the werewolf found himself more than willing to come to her defense.

"He's not my husband for much longer…" Her flat unhappy voice chilled was more chilling than the black eye. Rory's voice was usually bubbling with laughter. She always gave the impression that the world was a grand cosmic joke, and if asked nicely, she might be willing to share the punchline. Dark eyes closed and she pulled Raul and Romulus protectively close to her before continuing.

"Three years of various confounding and obliviating charms. He had to reset them every week, and they got stronger over time. But he went off on a bender, lost track of time. The healer at St. Mungo's said that was enough to weaken the spells. When he hit me, somehow they just… shattered. There are still bits and pieces—It hurts to even think that he hit me, for example—but they'll fade soon." Rory's eyes opened and looked straight into Remus's. "I'm sorry I haven't been here for you lately. I somehow kept… forgetting. I wouldn't have come here except… I'm so tired, and I don't have anywhere else to go."

"I told you, you're welcome in my home anytime. For as long as you need to be here. Aren't you my favorite not-sister in the world?" The school nickname brought back memories of happier times, and they both smiled. Strained exhausted smiles, but still smiles. Remus felt his spirits lifting for the first time in months, and wondered if being alone had tormented him that much. The little mental voice decided to provide a different answer. _It's because she reminds you of Sirius. Easy laughter, always smiling and making trouble, and then of course they look alike. You looked into her eyes and forgot they weren't Padfoot's eyes, didn't you? _

The tawny-haired man hated that little voice. Hated it all the more because it was always right. The oldest pureblood families did have a stamp of similarity on their features, and the Greys and Blacks had intermarried more times than was strictly healthy, leaving members of both families looking more like siblings than cousins. But Remus couldn't deny that it made him happy to see Rory smile, so he poured them both tea and settled in for a long talk. It had, after all, been a long time since he'd felt happy.

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Harry was exhausted by noon. He'd only had a single piece of bacon at breakfast, and a burnt piece of toast that even Dudley wouldn't eat. Then he'd had to do the dishes, weed the garden, and clean Dudley's rooms. He wasn't complaining, though. This was no more than he did every weekend, and this time he had the image of the zoo to hold in the front of his mind while he worked.

The very last task was done just before dinner. Aunt Petunia looked over his work and finally sniffed, saying she supposed it would have to do. Harry was so happy he barely noticed Dudley stealing the roll off his plate. The skinny black-haired boy would sleep well that night, despite the spiders that tickled his neck.

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Remus added another log to the fire, wiping a blob of mashed carrots off his sleeve with a chuckle. The twins had been enthusiastic about their dinner. So enthusiastic that little of the food had made it to their mouths. The soft humming of a lullaby in one of the guest rooms had almost lulled him to sleep when Rory slipped silently back into the living room. He grinned at her. "Finally got them to sleep, I see."

"Mhm. Had to explain to them that we're visiting 'Uncle Remus' for awhile. They're delighted, by the way. Apparently they've taken a fancy to you." She lowered herself onto an overstuffed armchair by the fire, relaxing into its embrace reluctantly. "You do realize you're going to have to help me get out of this chair, don't you? And it might take a crowbar to do the deed, cow that I am."

"Cow? You're the most fit pregnant woman I've ever seen. Especially as far along as you are…" Remus dropped gracefully into a chair opposite her, trying to calculate how many months along his friend was.

"Far along? Not even seven months yet. I'm just huge because it's twins again." The brunette patted her abdomen, a small worry line forming between her brows. "They will never know a father…"

"Bollocks." Having gotten her shocked attention by his uncharacteristic profanity, Remus continued. "I said you're welcome to stay here for as long as you need. Even if you need to stay permanently. Raul and Romulus are my godsons, aren't they? I'll be their father. You're my best friend, Rory. The only real friend I have left since… Since Voldemort was killed." He found his lips twitching into a smile. "You might have to help cover the grocery bill, though. You eat like a sumo wrestler when you're not pregnant. I shudder to think about how much food you put away now. I'm absolutely certain my paycheck can't cover it."

Remus easily ducked the first cushion that came flying at him. Unfortunately, Rory knew him well. Her second throw had started before he even began to duck, and hit him square in the face. The ensuing pillow fight meant the twins had to be sung back to sleep, but neither adult minded. It was good to laugh again.

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In his cell, wearied by the constant attentions of his guards, a black dog curled up and slept.

**_Huzzah, another chapter finished! In the next chapter, Moony goes to work, Harry gets attacked, Rory reads a diary, and Padfoot gets visitors. More dialogue, so it might be a couple of days. _**


	4. Revelations

**_Huzzah! Another update! Thanks to my single reviewer, Becky Silver Black, and the sublime Reyna, who lets me bounce ideas off of her, among other things. ;-P_**

_**Becky Silver Black: **He's almost out! I promise! And the next chapter is already blocked out! All I have to do is write it… Dialogue. –shudders-. I hate dialogue._

_**Erm… in this chapter, I own… well… Rory. And her children. And that's really about it. Heehee… and there are cameos in this chapter. If you recognize the name, bravo. Otherwise, don't worry about it, as it's just Wyrm pandering shamelessly to a couple of friends.**_

The sound and scent of bacon frying was a much more pleasant way to wake up than an alarm clock. Or so Remus decided upon waking to said scent and sound. In a moment of panic, he glanced at his clock, remembering that he hadn't set the alarm the night before. He relaxed slightly. Five minutes before normal, but he could hear the table being set. Breakfast would be ready by the time he got dressed.

The kitchen hadn't been so cheerful in years. Especially not at this hour of the morning. The twins alternated between eating their cereal and throwing it at one another when their mother's back was turned. Which it was, at the moment, as she divided the fry up onto two plates and set them down. "Perfect timing. I hope I didn't wake you. Wasn't sure when you left for work."

Remus sat down and dug in. "Best breakfast I've had in ages. But I hope you won't be offended if I don't eat all this. This would last me for a week!"

"I'm not surprised, given that you're not much more than skin and bones. Don't you ever eat, Remus?" The question seemed to be rhetorical, however, as she continued. "I never asked last night. Where do you work?"

Having finished as much as he could eat, he pushed the plate toward Rory, whose food had vanished as if by magic. Unabashed, she started in on his portion, still obviously waiting for a response. The werewolf made sure he had everything he needed before turning to grin at her. Just before apparating out of the kitchen, he answered her question.

"London Zoo."

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London Zoo. Harry bounced excitedly in his bus seat, eager to see everything. He'd never been to the zoo before, although Dudley had come for his fifth birthday. But here he was, with an entire day ahead of him.

Three hours later, Harry found himself standing in front of the deer enclosure. The other students had gotten quickly bored with the quiet herbivores, but the tousle-haired boy found them oddly fascinating, especially the stag posing beneath one of the trees, looking around nervously as if he expected predators to materialize out of nowhere. So fascinated was he, in fact, that he didn't even notice the rest of his class moving on to the crocodiles. He did, however, notice when the herd of deer suddenly bounded away. And the people behind him screaming. And the low grunting growl that was far too close behind him. He turned about with painful slowness.

Three of them, lined up in a row. Harry couldn't remember what they were called, but he recognized the spotted fur and the hunchbacked look of them. They were almost as tall as he was, and it didn't take a genius to know they were dangerous. He took a cautious step backwards. There was a tree nearby, maybe he could climb it. For his one step back, the animals took two steps forward with chortling growls, and Harry suddenly remembered what they were called. Hyenas.

He couldn't have explained afterward how he ended up in the tree. One moment he could feel the hyenas' hot breath on his face, and the next he was in the tree, looking down as they circled the trunk. A man with light reddish brown hair wearing the uniform of a zoo employee skidded to a halt and glared at the creatures, who immediately giggled in terror and cowered away from him.

The radio on the man's hip crackled to life. "Kzzk. We have a code green at the crocuta enclosure. All free personnel report to that area."

Harry's rescuer picked up the radio and spoke in a terse, angry voice. "I've got a visual on Larry, Moe, and Curly in front of the cervus pen. No sign of the fourth, but these three were enough to tree a kid."

"Nice work. I'm sending out Rin and Joe to collect them. And no worries about Shep. Too lazy to leave his cave, that one." The hyenas had stopped their cringing during the conversation, but a simple growl from the man standing under the tree caused the giggling and groveling to recommence. Harry was just trying to figure out how he was going to get down when the zoo employee glanced upward and smiled.

"Looks like we have an escapee from the monkey cage, too." Getting his first good look at the man's face, Harry almost fell out of the tree. He knew that face! He'd seen it in a dream.

A good dream, one that he'd had more than once. This man had been there, and a big black dog, and a laughing dark-haired woman, and another man and a woman he knew had to be his parents. At least, the redheaded woman was in an old picture of Aunt Petunia's family, and the bespectacled man looked a great deal like Harry himself. Besides, they _felt_ like parents. Realizing the man below the tree had said something else, the boy said the first thing that came to his mind. "I'm not a monkey. I'm Harry."

"Hello, Harry." The man smiled, looking as shocked as Harry felt. "If you can hang down by your hands from that branch you're on, I'll help you get down."

Without hesitation, Harry did as the man had suggested, hanging for a moment and looking around curiously from the high vantage point. He saw Miss Kettles, his teacher, running toward them looking frantic, and two zoo employees wrangling the hyenas away, and Dudley with an expression composed of equal parts envy and malice. Then strong arms wrapped around his waist and Harry let go of the branch to cling to the not-stranger's neck. The man's grip turned into a hug, and for the first time he could ever remember, Harry felt safe.

"By the way, Harry," his rescuer said, "my name is Remus Lupin."

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In contrast, Rory's morning had been wildly uneventful.

A brief scan of the pantry revealed a few tins of beans and half a tin of biscuits. She'd expected that, though. Remus's jesting comment of the night before about her eating habits hadn't been all that far off. A hyperactive metabolism combined with an energetic personality meant she never had to diet. Being seven months pregnant with twins on top of that and… well. A quick trip to the store solved the food problem, though, and Rory mentally blessed Professor Therrien's lesson on shopping in muggle grocery stores.

With soup started simmering on the stove for that night's dinner, tidying up done, and the twins playing by themselves—quietly, for once—Rory pulled out a box from the things she'd brought with her. Carrying it into the living room, she sat down and opened it. Inside were memories. A few pictures, two stuffed animals—much battered—a pacifier, a hairclip… Things salvaged from the remains of James and Lily's house. Rory was saving them for Harry, when he got older, but for now, they lived in the box.

A book in the collection caught her eye, and she picked it up. Her hands trembled as she recognized the slim leatherbound volume as Lily's diary. Rory had given it to her as a Christmas gift during first year, and the redhead had written in it every day. Almost against her will, Rory opened the diary and began to read.

It was almost dark when Remus got home, excited to talk about his day—and excited at having someone to talk about his day with. He was surprised, however, to be met at the door by Rory, who was pale beneath her already-fair skin. She pressed a book into his hands, already open to a page near the end. "Read it."

Remus read. Remus paled. And Remus dove for the floo powder by the fireplace, tossing it in and yelling, "Hogwarts, Headmaster's office!"

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An hour later, Sirius Black looked up from his bed as two grim-looking Aurors entered his cell and pulled him out into the hallway without a word.

**_Information about hyenas—especially their vocalizations—came from this site: _****_http/sailfish. the next chapter, Sirius actually gets dialogue! Aren't you excited? I know I am! Not! I hate writing dialogue. But I love Sirius almost as much as I love Remus, so I suppose it balances out._**


	5. Freedom

_**Another two days, another chapter. And it's time to respond to reviews. Not that that'll take long, as I only have two.**_

_**Becky Silver Black: **I'm glad it made your day! Maybe this one will make another day for you! _

_**Reyna:** Here. Sirius dialogue. And Rory and Remus both say thanks for the petting._

_**Umm… people… it's not mine.**_

The dark stone of the dungeon walls seemed to absorb the light from the scattered torches rather than being brightened by them. The benches where the Wizengamot sat were already filling with distinguished-looking witches and wizards, as well as some not-so-distinguished-looking ones. Front and center, of course, was Cornelius Fudge, newly-appointed Minister of Magic. He didn't look very pleased to be there.

Remus sat in the back row of observers' benches with Raul and Romulus. The twins were on their best behavior, having been promised a trip to the ice cream parlor afterward if they were good. As insurance, though, they each had a new coloring book and crayons to keep them quiet. Their mother was sitting at the front of the courtroom with Dumbledore, having decided to stay there after giving her testimony.

Lily's diary was being passed around the Wizengamot. The page they were reading was burned into Remus's memory. Neat, familiar handwriting, the sparkly purple ink that Lily had adored even though she said it was silly. And the words… Only one sentence was important, though. 'We'll just make Peter our secret keeper…'

An anticipatory rustling from the Wizengamot jarred Remus out of his meditations. The accused had arrived. The prisoner was led in and seated in the defendant's chair, whose chains immediately sprang to life and bound him securely. Fudge paled and flinched away slightly, although the man's attention wasn't on him.

Instead, the accused was looking around the room, apparently savoring the sights and sounds of the world outside his cell. His gaze lingered on Dumbledore, and he sat up a little straighter after a glimpse of the merry twinkle in the headmaster's eyes. The chained man's attention passed on to Rory, and he met her encouraging smile with the ghost of his own before looking at the empty spot next to her with a sad air.

If Raul hadn't chosen that moment to lean on Remus's side sleepily, the werewolf would have sprinted to be in that empty spot. Sirius was looking for him, and he wanted to be there. Even filthy and emaciated, with his long black hair matted, Sirius was beautiful in Remus's eyes.

In the end, it was a good thing Remus was in the back, or he would have attacked the man who yanked Sirius's head back by the hair and forced a dose of veritaserum down his throat.

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Dudley had told Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia some ridiculously contrived story about Harry's incident at the zoo. And as usual, they hadn't listened to Harry's version of events, and punished him for lying as well as for 'weirdness.' Uncle Vernon had bristled with rage and locked Harry in his cupboard, only letting him out for chores and school. He wondered how long this punishment would be. Last time it had been a whole month.

Harry wouldn't tell his aunt and uncle, but being locked in the cupboard was better than being Dudley's punching bag.

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Rory looked outwardly calm, but her hands were clenched under the table until they ached. First the Wizengamot spent almost an hour interrogating her on absolutely nothing, and then treating Sirius—who was innocent—with such casual cruelty… It was all she could do to keep from standing and hexing the self-righteous old farts. Maybe a few hours as aardvarks would teach them some respect…

She could see out of the corner of her eye that Remus was thinking the same thing, and mischief sparkled in her eyes. Just as she reached for her wand, though, Dumbledore's hand moved out and covered hers reprovingly. Rory sighed and subsided, watching the questioning begin.

Fudge was the main interrogator, and he looked positively terrified about it. He looked down at the chained man with an expression of commingled terror and contempt. "Is the accused ready?"

"Yes, minister." The straggly-haired interrogator who'd administered the veritaserum nodded fawningly.

"Prisoner. State your name."

"Sirius Orion Black." The voice sounded dead, lifeless. Rory shivered, then calmed herself with the fact that the emotionless voice was normal for someone under the truth potion.

"And do you, Sirius Orion Black, give your permission for the evidence from this interrogation to be used by the Wizengamot to judge you?" Not that it mattered if he agreed or not. The questions were more rhetorical than anything else.

"I give my permission." The Wizengamot murmured in surprise. Usually permission was refused.

"Mr. Black, will you please describe the events of the seventeenth of October, 1981?"

"The… seventeenth. I got up as usual, had porridge for breakfast, and went over to James and Lily's house." Sirius paused, his throat dry and hoarse from disuse, but the veritaserum wouldn't let him stop to rest it. "James and I… were talking about the traitor. About how the traitor would know I was the secret keeper. And we got an idea. We'd keep the secret keeper a secret. Everyone would think I was the secret keeper, but the real one would be Peter Pettigrew."

The Wizengamot roared.

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The questioning continued for three hours until Sirius slumped in his seat from exhaustion, the veritaserum having eaten away at his gaunt frame's already meager store of energy. At that point the Wizengamot began to speak among themselves, debating the verdict. Finally, the verdict came.

In the dungeons under the Ministry of Magic, the chains fell away, and Sirius Black was a free man.

**_Look! Sirius isn't in Azkaban anymore! . … I'm not happy with this chapter… there was originally a diary entry in it, but… meh. It felt too stilted. If you're interested, here it is:_**

_17 October_

_Sirius came to us with a brilliant idea today, but don't tell him I said that. His head's swelled enough as it is. It solves all the problems we had with the Fidelius Charm, and it's so simple. We'll just make Peter our secret-keeper and not tell anyone. He's the last person anyone would expect, especially if we keep pretending it's Sirius. In other news, Harry's learned how to escape his crib…_

**_Just… not natural, or something. Originally I had a different method for Sirius's innocence to come out, but I didn't want to go to all the work of explaining what a dumb feast was, whereas everyone knows what a diary is. I'm just lazy like that sometimes. However, next chapter we get to know a bit more about Remus's job, Harry writes a letter, Rory goes to St. Mungo's, and Sirius gets a crash course in wizarding law._**


	6. Beginnings

_**Thanks to (Drumroll) Becky Silver Black and Reyna! I don't know what I'd do without you people. You feed me the reviews I crave.**_

_**Becky Silver Black: **It's fun to get weird looks from strangers! And this chapter has some more free Sirius in it. If you're lucky, in another chapter or two we'll free Harry as well._

_**Reyna: **It's not that much shorter than any of the other chapters. Hehe… and they're all longer than the first one was. Should I give you the interrogator and some rat poison for your Christmas gift?_

_**Well, without further ado, here's your chapter!**_

Magdalena Bishop was an unremarkable woman. Everything about her, in fact, was unremarkable, from her appearance to her upbringing to her intelligence. In fact, it could even be said she was remarkably unremarkable. However, someone who knew her well—not that there were many such persons—would know that she had two astounding, amazing, remarkable talents. Maggie Bishop could WATCH. And Maggie Bishop could LISTEN.

After sixteen years of working at the zoo, every employee knew _of_ Maggie, but there was perhaps only one employee who _knew _her. For everyone else, she was the quiet, mothery woman who took care of minor veterinary tasks and whose advice was invariably good. Especially if that advice came unsolicited.

She gave good advice because she watched and listened to people. What had begun as a hobby—stealing bits of romance to enrich her own unremarkable existence—had become a calling. So that now after a lifetime of practice, Maggie could read anyone in moments and know the state of their lives. A single word could speak volumes about an unhappy past, an awkward silence painted a picture of unrequited love, and a half-hidden bashfully exultant smile practically screamed 'I got laid last night.'

It was just such a smile that was causing her trouble this morning. Not because she didn't recognize it, but because she would never have expected to see it on that particular face. The 'I got laid' face simply didn't fit with Remus Lupin.

Maggie thought over what she knew of the zoo's most laconic animal handler. He was one of the hardest workers at the place—the zoo manager was often heard to say 'If there were five Remus Lupins we wouldn't need any other employees.' He worked seven days a week, often covering shifts for others without complaint even though the zoo didn't pay extra for overtime. In fact, he was available at any time, day or night, except for the one day a month he took off to get treated for whatever unpronounceable disease he had. No one actually knew what the disease was, but everyone agreed that it was noncontagious, incurable, and that Lupin was very brave about it. Indeed, so brave was he that all of the single female employees had at some point offered or considered offering to 'comfort' him—in vain, of course. He wasn't at all interested in their offers.

Not that anyone could blame them for trying. Lupin was very handsome, and quite oblivious to the fact, which made him even more attractive. In addition, he had an aura of power about him that humans and animals alike couldn't help but respect. But Maggie thought she had him figured out. Remus Lupin was a modern day St. Francis. The aura of power, the clothes—shabby upon close inspection, charismatic when he chose to speak, beloved of children and animals. He'd even taken his first vacation in three years to help out a friend of his—a single mother with three-year-old twins—who'd been subpoenaed for a trial. Yes, altogether a contemporary St. Francis.

And now, on his first day back after a three week absence, that smile on his face came and shattered Maggie's perfect certainty. _Remus is not supposed to get laid…_

----------------------

Harry pulled out the letter as he trudged to school, glancing around to make sure Dudley was still well behind him. He'd written a thank you letter to Mr. Lupin, the man at the zoo, but he didn't have a stamp to mail it, or money to buy the stamp. And he didn't know where to address it to, but that was a minor matter. He could find a phone book or ask Miss Kettles, if he only had a stamp. But until then, he carried it around with him, and it preyed on his mind.

In frustration, Harry threw the letter as hard as he could, and was somewhat annoyed when it only went a few feet. He kept on walking, but a few paces past the letter he felt remorseful. After all, it had taken almost two days to write.

Harry watched in shock and dismay as the large brown bird flew away with his letter.

------------------------

The law offices of Silver, Vaughn, & Verdi were luxuriously furnished with leather chairs and expensive furniture. Which is why Rory and Sirius were both surprised when Aidan Silver, Esq., produced a box of toys for the twins to play with while the three adults discussed Rory's now-official divorce and what would happen to the children.

"So what you're saying," Sirius interrupted the lawyer-wizard's long complicated speech, "Is that Silvanus can't claim the unborn ones if someone else's name is on the birth certificate as father?"

"That's a fairly accurate summary, yes, Mr. Black. For the… er… older children, however, it's the more complicated matter of either convincing Mr. Silvanus to give up all claim on the twins or having him declared an unfit parent. Either would be most difficult. The former almost impossible. The latter, well… as much as I hate to admit it, money and power have a great deal to do with such declarations, and the Silvanus family has a great deal of money and influence."

"Not nearly as much as the Greys, they don't." Rory's eyes had narrowed in grim triumph. If Silver had an answer to that, it was cut off by Sirius's barking laugh.

"If your family name's not enough, I'll add mine. Nobody's going to argue with the last scion of the most ancient and noble house of Black. In fact, you can even put my name on the birth certificate. It's not as if I won't help raise the kids anyway." A thought occurred to him, and he turned to Silver. "It won't matter if it's obviously false, will it? They don't exactly allow conjugal visits in Azkaban."

"It shouldn't. If you claim them, and Ms. Grey doesn't contest it, then they're legally yours. Rather a strange law, but…" Silver shrugged, smiling. "And if you're willing to lend your influence to the child custody proceedings, I have every confidence that the three of us can rain on Mr. Silvanus's parade."

----------------------

Less than an hour later, they'd thanked Silver for his advice, and were walking around muggle London, window shopping. Many people turned their heads to watch the handsome couple and the two boys as all four talked and laughed. Even more people turned to watch when the woman suddenly went to her knees, wrapping arms around herself and crying out in pain. Later, Sirius would be amazed at how quickly he got his very pregnant friend and the pair of toddlers to the nearest floo.

On the twenty-second of November, at 4:28 AM and 4:42 AM respectively, Adara Neona and Alhena Selena Grey-Black were born.

**_Well, it's not quite in the order I promised in the last chapter. Rory's and Sirius's bits sorta meshed together. And that sounded incredibly wrong to me when I reread it just now. But you all know what I meant. And poor Rory's got another set of twins. Oy vey. In case you care, Adara (Maidens) is a star in the same constellation as Sirius, and Alhena (Twins) is in Gemini. Neona and Selena are both Greek names meaning moon._**

**_Aaanyway… don't y'all love Maggie? She's so fun to write. I was going to make this a one-time only appearance for her, just as sort of exposition, but… I like her. And I just spent three paragraphs introducing her for a single scene. Maybe I should bring her back in the future as a babysitter or something? After all, two newborns, two toddlers, and one five-year-old can't take care of themselves, and even a three-parent household needs a babysitter sometimes. And yes, I promise there will be a five-year-old in the house. Soon._**

_**Next chapter: pillow talk, the return of the letter, ancient history, and animagi.**_


	7. Serendipity

**_Okay, Sunny Moonlight asked me for a timeline of events, and so I decided to put it here for all of you just in case it was confusing:_**

**_Chapters 1, 2, & 3: 31 October, Hallowe'en—day after full moon, chapter one is early morning._**

_**Chapter 4: 1 November**_

_**Chapter 5: 2 November**_

_**Chapter 6: 21 November**_

_**Chapter 7: 28 November—day after full moon**_

**_The full moon dates here are not accurate for 1985, but we'll all pretend, won't we? I'm pretty sure I've got the full moon spaced right, at least. I'll try to post the date at the beginning of each chapter from now on._**

_**I love my marvelous reviewers!**_

_**Reyna: **You do realize that if Remus got laid, Sirius got laid too, right? And I'm glad that made your chapter. Siriusly._

_**Sunny Moonlight: **Hope the calendar helps! Remus is gonna be daddy too, I promise. And Harry will get saved soon! Oh, and Maggie will be back in future chapters, so it's good that you liked her._

_**molloch: **'Interaction'? o.ô You can tell my mind's in the gutter. But there is some interaction in this chapter. Just not 'interaction.'_

_**Becky Silver Black: **I'll free him soon, really!_

_**If I owned these characters, would I really be writing fanfiction?**_

At first it felt like a dream. He'd had lots of dreams like it in the past. Waking slowly, only a few scratches and a bit of joint ache to remind him of the full moon last night, long limbs tangled with his own… That was the moment Remus was sure he wasn't dreaming. The legs tangled with his were too thin, and the body sprawled half on top of him was too light. He opened his eyes to see a curtain of black silk across his chest and the pillow and the porcelain-pale shoulder beside him, and smiled. That was different, too.

Four years in Azkaban had left Sirius's hair a matted mess. But three hours of combing and detangling spells and a bottle of shampoo had turned the rats' nest into a waist-length fall of ebony silk. The now-registered animagus had planned on getting it cut until he realized how often Remus went out of his way to run his fingers through it. Which is what he was doing now, moving it away from the sleeping face of his lover. Still too thin, that face, but nowhere near as skeletal as it had been a month ago when he'd first left Azkaban. Before too long he'd be just as handsome as he'd been five years ago.

Sirius could sleep through earthquakes, thunderstorms, and the piercing cries of Adara and Alhena when they woke in the night, but Remus's featherlight touch on his face brought him out of dreamland with a smile. Silvery grey eyes met gold, and Sirius chuckled. "Good morning, Mr. Moony."

"Good morning yourself, Mr. Padfoot. Sleep well?"

"Like a log, as always. But… I dreamed." Sirius's face clouded over, and Remus knew from experience that his lover wouldn't say more about the dream than that. "I'm worried about Harry, though."

The werewolf nodded. He'd expected this question, but had never quite worked out how to respond. While he thought, the comfortable silence between them lengthened, and was flavored by the quiet sound of the rain drumming on the roof for the seventh day in a row, and the distinctive aroma of the animagus potion Rory was brewing. She'd laughingly said she wasn't going to be the only adult in the household not in touch with her animal side. Finally Remus sighed. "You know what Dumbledore said…"

"Yes, but… we were more Lily's family than Petunia ever was! And look at us. You're one of the best ward-builders in Europe, Rory knows as many defense spells as Madeye Moody, and we all had auror training while we were in the Order. Harry couldn't possibly be safer with the muggles than he would be with us. And I know he can't be happy with them."

Remus hugged his lover, trying to comfort him. "We can't interfere unless Harry asks us to. Which is absurd, because the boy doesn't even know we exist, but there it is."

Just then, the window burst open and a sodden, bedraggled owl flapped in and deposited an equally sodden and bedraggled letter on the bed before perching on the bedpost to preen itself.

---------------------------

Harry curled up in his cupboard, staring off into the darkness. It wasn't fair. Just a few days ago his punishment from the zoo had ended, and now he was being punished again for something he hadn't even done! He'd gotten a good grade on his homework and Dudley claimed he'd cheated. 'I didn't steal Dudley's work. Why would I? Mine was better. It's not fair. Now I've got to spend the entire weekend in this stupid cupboard.'

Watching a spider weave its web in a corner of the cupboard, Harry wished someone would take him away.

-----------------------------

The animagus potion was the next to last step involved in becoming an animagus. It smelled rather like lavender and cinnamon, although Sirius insisted it tasted like buttered toast. An hour after it was consumed, the would-be animagus could attempt the exceedingly difficult transfiguration spell that would allow him or her to assume animal form.

All four children had been remarkably quiet today—apparently the incessant rain had subdued their usual high spirits. Rome and Raul had even gone to take a nap without their mother's persuasion. All of which left Rory free to finish up her potion. She was just tossing back the required dose when her housemates entered the kitchen.

"You're right, Sirius. It does taste like buttered toast." Putting her mug down, Rory turned to smile at them, and paused. Both men showed signs of getting dressed hastily. Sirius's shirt was on inside out, and Remus obviously hadn't combed his hair. They were both grinning from ear to ear. Before she could ask, Sirius held out a damp, crayon-written letter. After reading it, her grin matched theirs. "You two had better get to work."

"Work?" Remus blinked, momentarily confused.

"Yes, work. Dumbledore can't argue with that, but he'll argue anyway. You know how he is. It's just as well, though. It'll take me the rest of the day to get Harry's room ready." Rory did some mental calculations, and smiled. "Dumbledore will delay you until about bedtime tonight, so it will work out just right."

"Whaat?" Indignant, Sirius folded his arms. "We're not waiting until tomorrow to spring Harry from the muggles. Remus, get ready to go. I'm going to Floo Dumbledore right now, and we'll have Harry here in time for tea." The dark-haired man headed for the hearth, and within seconds was up to his waist in green flames.

After watching for a moment, Remus stepped over to the stove and poured himself a cup of tea before sitting down at the kitchen table. He chuckled in amusement as Sirius's feet disappeared through the Floo. "So, what colour should we paint Harry's room?"

--------------------

_I hate it when Rory's right. The worst part is, she never even says 'I told you so' like any normal human being. _Sirius had been arguing with Dumbledore for what felt like weeks, although a glance at his watch told him it had only been seven hours. 'Only' seven hours. The headmaster's animagus form obviously had to be a goat. Nothing else could be that stubborn. He looked rather caprine, too. "No I don't want another cup of tea you stubborn old goat!"

In a castle in Scotland, a dog butted heads with a goat.

**_Well, I didn't get as far as I'd intended with this chapter, but I rather like this version better than what I had in mind. Randomly, if anyone has ideas on what Rory's animagus form should be, feel free to mention it in your review. I've a general idea, but suggestions are always welcome. Next chapter: We'll see._**


	8. Rescue

**_Hmm… You know… I've almost got a schedule going with this fic. Schedules are dangerous. Because they mean when I'm 'late,' I feel guilty. Silly Wyrm. However, it's extra-long, which should make you all happy. And better yet, I have FIVE reviewers for this chapter! FIVE! I love them all! Cookies for the lot of you!_**

_**Becky Silver Black: **Because… goats are funny? And I'm afraid your sign isn't going to get much more mileage… I love making people happy, though._

_**Sunny Moonlight: **A-Team? You shouldn't have said that. Sirius and Rory are arguing over who gets to be Murdock now, although personally I see Sirius as more of a Templeton Peck. And Remus found a cigar somewhere and keeps saying 'I love it when a plan comes together.' However, I hope you're happy with the animagus form Reyna and I came up with for Rory. _

_**Evil Emz:** Thank you thank you thank you! I try very hard to do the funny/sad mix and keep it balanced. _

_**Lieu of Flowers: **I'm glad you like it. I promise Rory's not a Mary Sue, nor will she ever become one. She's simply a very cool plot device for the purpose of giving Sirius and Remus a bunch of children to be daddies to._

_**Uknowho**: I know who? Aaah! Voldemort likes my fic! Wait… is that a good thing, or a bad thing? I'm not sure._

_**Lovely beautiful reviews. Anyway, on to the story! And I only own Rory! Hey! That rhymed!**_

29 November 1985

Sirius hadn't returned to the cottage on the moor until after midnight, but he was practically dancing with joy when he did. His excitement had infused his housemates with new energy, and neither of them were sleepy, despite the rain still drumming monotonously on the roof. After Remus and Rory had shown off Harry's room, and the trio had plotted out the day ahead, a tense, anticipatory silence had fallen on them all. The need to be relatively quiet to keep from waking the children balanced badly with nervous energy. Sirius got up and paced, three steps, turn, three steps, turn. Nevermind that there was much more room to pace in; the jet-haired man only took the three steps.

Casting about in his mind for something to distract them all, Remus's sensitive nose picked up the lingering odors of potion ingredients. "You both know what we've forgotten, don't you?"

Both dark heads of hair turned toward Remus, and he found himself momentarily distracted by the fluid grace of his lover's whirl to face him and the way his long hair flared and flowed with the movement. Four impatient grey eyes finally brought him back to himself, and he smiled in amusement at his… family. That thought struck him with such force that he almost retreated back into his thoughts, but then he'd have to explain, and he wanted time to savor the feeling. It had been a long time since Remus had had a family. "Someone in this room, not to name any names, took a potion this afternoon. And if it had been me, I'd be trying out my animagus powers right now."

Discovering that Rory was a snow leopard—and that snow leopards can usually defeat large black dogs in friendly wrestling matches—occupied them until the newborns woke at dawn, clamoring for breakfast. As Remus and Sirius went to the kitchen—Remus to cook, and Sirius to pester and distract him at every turn—the werewolf smiled. Family.

-------------------------

Meanwhile, at Number 4 Privet Drive, Harry was hungry. Half a slice of stale bread wasn't much of a dinner, and it looked like breakfast wasn't going to be much better. He'd been dragged out of his cupboard to set the table while Aunt Petunia made breakfast, but as soon as that chore was done, it was back in the cupboard. He heard the locks on the outside of the door being turned, and hoped there would be some burnt toast left over that he could sneak when he was let out to do the dishes.

The doorbell rang.

--------------------------

Rory was most uncomfortable. True, she quite often wore muggle clothing, but that was jeans and a t-shirt. This business suit was itchy and chafed. Worse, it had been bought before she was pregnant with the girls, which meant it was now too tight around the chest. A glance at her companions revealed that Sirius was looked just as uncomfortable as she, and Remus kept fighting with his tie as if it was strangling him.

A last look up at the house of Remus's friend Maggie, who'd agreed to take care of the children for the day, and Rory was ready to go. Almost. "Did either of you ever actually meet Lily's sister? Or her husband, for that matter?"

"No," Remus responded after exchanging a look with Sirius. "I saw her leaving a room once protesting about Lily and her 'freakish' friends, but that was it. All I know is that she disliked Lily for being a witch."

"I spent a lot of time with her during the summers… the Dursleys are the kind of people who give witches a bad name. They don't like anything outside their definition of 'normal,' and magic isn't 'normal.' Petunia didn't hate Lily for being a witch—she hated her because Lily was praised for being 'abnormal.' What I'm trying to say is, we're going to have trouble getting in the house, and when we leave, we're likely to have a very confused little boy for awhile."

"You mean he might not know about his parents." Sirius's voice was calm and level, a fact which caused his friends to exchange an alarmed look. Calm Sirius meant angry Sirius. Rory chose her next words carefully, but couldn't tell him less than the truth.

"That's entirely possible. It's also possible that if he's shown any signs of magical talent, he's been punished for it. At the very least, he's been living with people who don't understand him, and haven't even tried to." Rory met Sirius's eyes meaningfully. They both knew about not being understood by family, although the Greys were a bit more liberal than the Blacks.

"Then let's not keep him there any longer. I'll try to keep my mouth shut and let you two do the talking." Sirius slipped an arm around Remus's waist and pulled the werewolf close as the trio walked out of sight of potential watchers before apparating.

---------------------

The house was oppressively tidy, even from the outside. Not only was it tidy, it was exactly like the houses on either side of it, and the ones across from it, and down the street… the only features to distinguish number four from number eight, or seventeen, or forty two was the color of the flowers out front and the number on the door. Sirius found the monotony almost painful. "Who actually chooses to live like this? There's no originality anywhere!"

"That sums up the Dursleys quite well, actually. Petunia, anyway. I only met her husband once, though he seemed the same." Rory pulled out her reading glasses and put them on, the action somehow transforming her into a very prim and proper businesswoman. Sirius wondered how she managed it—it fit so oddly with her usual cheerful laidback manner.

The comforting form of Remus pressed against his side steadied Sirius, but he knew it couldn't last much longer. The Dursleys had to take them seriously, and he had a good guess as to the Dursley view on homosexuals. Remus had apparently come to the same conclusion, because with a soft smile and a caress, he reluctantly pulled away from the embrace. He did, however, stay close enough that their shoulders touched, and Sirius smirked. "Can't keep your hands off me, can you Moony?"

"Just wait 'til you see where I put them next time, Padfoot." Remus definitely had the sexiest smirk in the world. Under other circumstances, Sirius would have been forced to kiss it, but Rory was ringing the doorbell, so both men tried to be on good behavior.

---------------------

Petunia Evans Dursley frowned when the doorbell rang. Who could be at the door at this hour of the morning? Dudley hadn't even finished breakfast yet. Poor dear always got so hungry by lunch if he didn't have all of his breakfast. And Vernon was still reading his paper… Petunia headed for the door, removing her apron as she went. A look out the peephole revealed a very businesslike trio, although one of the men had obscenely long hair. She opened the door. "I'm sorry, no solicitors…"

"We're not solicitors." The woman adjusted her glasses. "I'm Aurora Grey, and my associates and I are here to discuss important business regarding the estate of James and Lily Potter."

The mention of her sister's name darkened Petunia's face, and she would have closed the door except somehow all three of the strangers were through the door and the tawny-haired one was closing it behind him. Grey produced a sheet of parchment from somewhere, and consulted it. "Now, you're likely not aware of the exact provisions of the Potters' will in regards to…"

"No I am not aware, nor do I care what my sister and her good-for-nothing husband wrote in their will. It's bad enough that we've had to raise their son!" Petunia had a height advantage of a few inches, and stood as close as possible to the slender brunette, trying to intimidate her.

Grey lifted her eyes to those of the belligerent woman before her. A lifted eyebrow and a calm smile somehow turned the tables, and Petunia was the one left feeling intimidated. "As I was saying, you may be unaware that you were not the intended custodians of your nephew Harry. Mr. and Mrs. Potter appointed a godfather, one Sirius Black…"

"Who killed them. I know the whole story. The man's in prison, what does he have to do with anything?" Petunia felt and heard Vernon coming up behind her, and stood taller. Her husband would help get rid of these people.

"Well, then if you know the whole story you'll know that Mr. Black is out of prison, and has requested custody of his godson. I have the paperwork here, already signed by Headmaster Dumbledore. All you need to do is sign and turn over your nephew." The businesslike woman produced another bit of parchment, and the tawny-haired man stepped forward with a quill and inkwell. It was rather ominous to Petunia the way their companion stayed behind them in the shadows.

Vernon pushed past his wife. "Where do we sign?"

"Vernon, no!" Petunia pulled him down to whisper in his ear. "They're trying to turn the boy over to his godfather. The man's a murderer! He'll be killed!"

Apparently Petunia's whispering technique needed some work, as the tallest of the trio—the long-haired man—stepped forward. "Voldemort couldn't kill him. What makes you think I can?"

Petunia fainted. Vernon scowled. Grey adjusted her glasses. "Shall we get on with the signing?"

By the time Petunia regained consciousness, Vernon had signed the parchment—with his pen, having declined the quill. He scowled as Black stepped forward to countersign. "Don't you ever cut your hair? You look like a fairy."

The three strangers exchanged a look before bursting into laughter, although no explanation was forthcoming while Black signed the papers over the now-conscious Petunia's protests. Finally he reached out and pulled the tawny-haired man close. "But I am a fairy, Dursley. We're Harry's fairy godfathers. Now where is he?"

Petunia tried to sneak back to Harry's cupboard, meaning to let Harry out before they could get there, but all three of them followed her back into the house, ignoring the purpling of Vernon's face. At the sight of the cupboard, growls rose from all three, and Petunia knew she was in trouble. Black shoved her aside, pointing his wand at the door and muttering something under his breath.

All three were obviously furious, but the quiet, as-yet-unnamed man was trembling in anger, dividing his gaze between Vernon and Petunia. "You keep him in the cupboard?"

"Yes. What business is it of yours?" Vernon stepped forward, gnawing on his mustache, but not at all afraid of the slender, golden eyed man in front of him. Petunia, however, shrank away from the quiet man, sensing that there was more to him than met the eye.

Sirius and Rory turned away from the cupboard, Sirius holding a confused but elated Harry, and Rory holding a pillowcase full of Harry's few belongings. They were just in time to see Remus's fist connecting with Vernon Dursley's nose.

_**Whew… this one took awhile. And I think it qualifies as my longest chapter ever. I really wanted to get Harry out of there, though, so I added the fifth section for this chapter. Next chapter is all about learning to be a family. And review! It makes me happy! Without reviews this chapter would've taken even longer to write.  
**_


	9. Laughter

**_Happy Hallowe'en! I might get a wee bit slower with updates in the future, as I just had a really incredibly good job interview today. Wish me luck!_**

_**It's that time again! Time to thank my beautimous reviewers!**_

_**gatermage: **I'm glad you like it, here's your update!_

_**molloch: **The family's coming together, slowly but surely, although a bit faster than one might expect._

_**uknowho: **Hehe… it's always the quiet ones, isn't it?_

_**Sunny moonlight: **It's nice that you like my story! Although I'm sorry if you have to read my story when you're incoherent for it to make sense. :-P_

_**Becky Silver Black:** Yay happiness! Yay dancing! Yay happy dancing! Happydances because Becky likes the story!_

_**And now, without further ado, the next chapter!**_

30 November 1985

In his lover's arms, sated and happy, with the sounds and scents of children and cooking going on outside the door—muffled slightly by the silencing spell Sirius had put on their room to keep from waking said children—that was as close to heaven as Remus could wish for. A glance at the clock revealed that he had the luxury of thirty minutes before he had to get out of bed. Thirty minutes to revel in comfort and Sirius's warm spicy scent. To think that less than a month ago he was lonely and despairing. Now… now he had… "Family."

"Hmm? What was that, Rem?" Sirius blinked lazily, cuddling closer to look into the golden eyes that focused on him.

"I didn't know you were awake." Long scarred fingers went of their own accord to the soft locks that had fallen in Sirius's eyes. "I was just talking to myself."

"You said 'family.'" The statement was almost accusatory, but Remus knew the accusation wasn't directed toward him.

"We're a family. You, me, Rory, her children, Harry. An unorthodox family, but…"

The startled bark of laughter brought a smile to Remus's face, and flooded his heart with warmth. He loved to make Sirius laugh. "You're right. We are a family, aren't we? I… I like the idea. But you're not the first one of us to figure that out, you know."

Remus blinked, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Amazing. You always used to be so observant." Sirius grinned mischievously. "Raul and Rome figured it out first. Or hadn't you noticed that we're now 'Daddy Wemmy' and 'Papa Siwi'?"

Chuckling, Remus punched his lover playfully on the shoulder. At least, that was the intention. What really happened was that his hand went into a fist, the scabs on his knuckles broke, and Remus squeaked in surprise and pain, cradling his aching, bloody hand to his chest. He waved off Sirius's concern, shaking his head ruefully. "Who'd have ever guessed that a nose looking that squishy would be so damned hard?"

'Laughter really is the best medicine,' ruminated the werewolf as his lover finally controlled his giggling enough to get a wand to heal the abused hand. 'Or maybe Padfoot's laughter is just magic.'

-----------------------------

Harry knew exactly where he was when he woke up that morning. Singing and laughter were not components of a Dursley morning. Nor was the wide soft bed underneath him. He wondered what time it was, but decided it must be early, or he'd have been called to help with breakfast and do his morning chores. Early meant more time to lie in the most comfortable bed he'd ever seen, and review the events of the day before.

It had started with the sounds of people arguing outside, and then his door was flung open. Silhouetted against the hallway was a smiling face that seemed oddly familiar. The thin man held out his arms. "Hello Harry. My name's Sirius. I'm your godfather, and we're here to take you away."

The only things that had registered in Harry's mind were the welcoming arms and the words 'take you away.' Eagerly, he'd flung himself into Sirius's embrace, blinking happily at the woman who reached out and ruffled his hair fondly before poking her head into the cupboard. Then Mr. Lupin from the zoo had punched Uncle Vernon. That had been beautiful—the punch, then Uncle Vernon staggering backward with a roar before stumbling over the coffee table and landing with a crash of Aunt Petunia's favorite tea set.

The rest of the day had been something of a blur, with only a few moments standing out in Harry's memory. Getting his first new clothes ever… ordering whatever he wanted at the ice cream parlor… running amok through the toy store with Sirius and Rory while Remus shook his head and laughed. Laughter had been there throughout the day. Remus's dry chuckle, Sirius's short exclamatory outbursts, Rory's rippling snicker… the mirth seemed to grow late in the afternoon with Rome and Raul's mischievous giggles and the babies' gleeful burbling.

Smiling with the memories, Harry opened his eyes, and sat bolt upright in alarm at the angle of the sun. He rushed to get dressed and out to the kitchen. They'd be angry with him for not helping with breakfast!

--------------------------

Rory was very grateful when Remus and Sirius came into the kitchen. The twins had been excited by the day spent at Maggie's house, and had therefore stayed up all night. Both sets of twins. She'd finally gotten the girls asleep near dawn, and started the boys on a bowl of cereal each while she tried to make breakfast. Remus arrived just in time to keep her from putting cinnamon in the eggs and peppering the scones. He took over the breakfast preparations after turning her over to his partner, who saw her to the most comfortable chair in the kitchen. Sirius was about to sit himself when Alhena started to cry.

Stalling her, the dark-haired man stood himself. "I'll take care of her. I'm her father, remember?" He exchanged a loving look with Remus, then went off to the babies' room, where he could soon be heard making exaggerated gagging noises as he changed diapers.

Rory chuckled and leaned back into her chair, sighing wearily. All she wanted right now was food and sleep. Not necessarily in that order. She smiled weakly at Remus as he set a plate in front of her. "It looks good."

After a bite told her that it was even better than it looked, the contents of the plate seemed to magically vanish from the plate. Remus raised a brow. "Hungry much?"

Glaring ruefully at Raul and Rome, who'd fallen asleep in their bowls of dry cereal, Rory shook her head. "There's a very old saying in China. 'Sleep is food and food is sleep.' I haven't had any sleep, therefore I need food. The kids kept me up all night. If it wasn't these two, it was the girls clamoring for attention." The rueful glare turned into an amused smirk. "And not to name names, but _someone_ was too busy playing hide-the-sausage last night to come help me with the little brats."

Remus choked on his tea. "You heard…"

"I didn't hear a thing." She grinned at her friend's discomfiture. "The silencing spell was very good. So good, in fact, that you didn't hear me knocking. And it doesn't take a genius to figure out why the two of you would have a silencing spell on your room."

Whatever they were about to say next was lost as Sirius entered the kitchen from one side, and Harry rushed in from the other, looking terrified. The adults blinked at the expression on the boy's face, and Sirius finally spoke. "What's wrong, Harry?"

"I'm sorry I didn't wake up and I'm sorry I wasn't here to help with breakfast it'll never happen again I'm so sorry…" Harry finally stopped to breathe, and blinked as he found three adults laughing and hugging him. All three knelt around him, and Rory spoke seriously.

"Harry, you're not going to get in trouble here for sleeping in. You don't have to help cook unless you want to, and the only chore you have is keeping your room clean." Rory smiled, "Although you're more than welcome to help us out if you want to."

The boy looked incredulously from Rory to Remus to Sirius, eventually realizing from their gentle but serious faces that they were telling the truth. Something about the realization made him almost cry, and he tried to hug all three of them at once.

-----------------------

Sirius had spent four years in Azkaban for murders he hadn't committed, and he'd sworn never to go back there. But at that moment if Vernon or Petunia Dursley had been within his reach, Sirius would have truly been a murderer. No child should have been so terrified at being late to breakfast. A quick look revealed that his friends were just as murderous as he. Perhaps he could convince Rory to pay a late night visit to the Dursley home for some harmless chaos. Remus would never go for it, but…

In retrospect, Sirius wasn't so sure that Remus wouldn't help after watching Harry try to take the worst of the breakfast—the burnt bits of toast, the eggs just a bit too dry… Harry was happily bewildered when the adults insisted on giving him the best bits of food, and didn't notice the undercurrent of anger. They told Harry stories about his parents while he ate, and he insisted on helping wash dishes afterward.

The discussion of Lily and James eventually moved into the living room, and Harry climbed into Sirius' lap while Rory carried the boys off to bed and Remus went to get a photo album. Leaning trustfully against his godfather, Harry asked a question that had weight behind it—as if it had been on his mind for awhile. "Sirius… Raul and Rome call you Papa… Can I call you Papa, too?"

Sirius didn't know whether to laugh and cry, so he did both, hugging Harry tightly. Suddenly, his anger at the Dursleys didn't seem so important anymore.

**_So, there you have it, another chapter. And to forestall questions, if you don't know what 'hide-the-sausage' is, cherish your innocence, and do your parents know you're online? _**

_**Hmm… there's a scene I have sketched out that didn't make it in this chapter… Ah, well. It'll probably show up next chapter.**_


	10. Magic

**_Okay, loves. First off, I'm sorry this chapter took so long. I've been sick and insanely busy for awhile, and haven't the time or the mood to write. Second, I have bad news and good news. The bad news is that this is the last chapter of The Boy Who Lived: Take Two. The good news is, there will be a sequel, and I'll post an announcement of it in this fic when I start it. I really like this storyline and the setup, but frankly, I can't do much more with Harry as a five-year-old without the story getting stale. It'll just take a few days to regroup._**

_**And third, it's time to thank the reviewers!**_

_**Bluebear13:** I'm glad you like the story, here's your update!_

_**Gatermage: **Well, the Dursleys aren't dead yet, but… I'll take it under consideration. Mweheheheh_

_**uknowho**: I try. I don't know any gay couples well enough to observe how they act in private, so I'm going off of instinct here. And thankyouthankyouthankyou for the well-written part. I try very hard to make my writing something I'd want to read. Plus I'm a grammar nazi._

_**Becky Silver Black:** Hehe… I liked the cuteness, too. And after this chapter you'll have officially reviewed EVERY chapter. (Bakes a cake for Becky.)_

_**littlepandacub: **I thought it was a fairly tame chapter… Strange. Maybe I should up the rating on this fic?_

30 November 1985

The box full of photograph albums had somehow ended up in the back of Remus's closet, and he felt rather like an archaeologist digging around to unearth it. Finally he emerged with the large heavy box, and went to the living room to find Sirius and Harry engaged in a tickle fight. Their laughter brought a smile to his face, and without realizing it, he joined the fight, rescuing Harry from his godfather. Even with two-to-one odds, Sirius was winning until Rory joined in, and the end result was a dogpile on the canine animagus.

When they'd all wiped the merry tears from their eyes, Harry looked over at the box full of leather-bound albums. "Those can't all be pictures of my parents."

"Most of them have James or Lily in them. Or one of us." Remus gestured around the room. "Peter was fond of taking pictures."

Harry couldn't hear the subvocalized growls coming from Sirius and Rory, but werewolf ears are keen. If he didn't look directly at them, Remus could almost see the hackles of their animagus forms raising. He was really quite impressed that neither of them said anything, and that they'd calmed down so quickly. Completely oblivious to the tenseness of the moment, Harry frowned at the unfamiliar name. "Who is Peter?"

Remus answered, not sure what either of the others would say. "Peter Pettigrew was a friend of ours. He… Voldemort did something to him… he's not Peter anymore."

That was enough. They could tell Harry the rest when he was old enough to understand. Hopefully he wouldn't ask any more questions about Peter. He didn't, but the new topic shocked all three adults. "Who's Voldemort?"

"Voldemort is an evil wizard, Harry." Rory's voice was controlled and even, a sure sign that she was suppressing emotions. Searching for a distraction, Remus started looking through the box of albums for the oldest one.

--------------------------

"Wizards? Uncle Vernon says there's no such thing as wizards…" Harry hadn't meant to blurt that out, but the luxury of actually being _encouraged_ to ask questions was strange. Strange wasn't necessarily pleasant, though. Especially not when three pairs of eyes suddenly stared at him incredulously, as if he'd said the sky was orange.

"Y-y-you mean they didn't _tell you_?" Sirius spluttered, his face forming into an evil-looking scowl. Harry shrank away toward Remus, who put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Calm down, Padfoot. You're frightening Harry." The boy wriggled closer to Remus, then relaxed as Sirius smiled apologetically.

"I'm sorry, Harry. I was just upset because your uncle lied to you. Wizards do exist. We're wizards." Sirius's grin was infectious, but Harry couldn't help being skeptical. It obviously showed, because his godfather leaned forward with a mischievous look on his face. "Want to see some magic?"

What answer could any five year old boy give to that question but an enthusiastic nod?

With a wink and a bark of laughter, Sirius disappeared, and in his place was a huge black dog. Before Harry could register anything but shock, the dog was on him, licking his face and wagging its tail so hard they both shook.

----------------

Once Sirius was done convincing Harry that magic existed, they all sat down with the albums, the boy listening eagerly while the adults told him tales of his parents. Rory noted that Remus kept gently inserting Peter into the stories. He was right, of course. Peter was an important part of their lives at Hogwarts. He'd been a friend of James, Sirius, and Remus. Rory had tutored him in Muggle Studies, and felt rather sorry for him. Protecting Peter had helped form the characters of James and Sirius.

Peter had been such a nice boy. Quiet, not the cleverest, a bit of a klutz… But still unquestionably a part of the Marauders. He even had his own little coterie of followers, just as the other three did. Mostly girls that found him more approachable than his handsomer and cleverer comrades. Not that Peter wasn't attractive. He was handsome in an understated way, although he started putting on weight after Hogwarts.

Even struggling through classes he'd been part of the group. Rory knew she wasn't the only one who'd been helped by tutoring him. Having to break things down and explain them helped the tutor as much as the pupil. She and Lily credited him with their high Charms grades, and he was so grateful for their help that it was laughable.

For almost a decade he'd been a good friend and a true Gryffindor. But if Rory ever saw the little rat again she'd kill him.

With a brief wistful thought of how things would have been if Peter hadn't betrayed them all, Rory turned back to the conversation, summoning a smile.

---------------------------

The clock striking two o'clock in the morning jarred Sirius awake. It wasn't an unpleasant awakening, though. In fact, Sirius couldn't remember being so happy in years. The last album had been put away five hours before, and they'd sat around talking until everyone had dropped off to sleep one by one.

Alhena and Adara were in their cradle, moved into the room so Rory didn't have to go to another room when they woke up. She was curled up on the floor in animagus form with Raul using her for a mattress. Romulus was asleep leaning on Remus, who was leaning on Sirius. Sirius nuzzled his lover's soft hair, smiling in amusement at Harry, who was sprawled bonelessly across both their laps.

Listening to the gentle susurration of deep breathing and quiet snores, the dark-haired man tried to imagine the Black family like this. His short bitter laugh at the thought woke Remus. Not for the first time, the werewolf's ability to divine his thoughts startled Sirius. It was nothing short of magical when the amber-eyed man smiled sadly and kissed his beloved. "They're not your family anymore. They haven't been for years, if they ever were to begin with. This is your family now, Padfoot. And don't you forget it."

Eyes full of happy tears, Sirius pulled Remus closer and ruffled Harry's hair. No, he wouldn't forget. Family.

**_Well, my friends, that's it. Like I said, there will be a sequel, and I'll probably post the first chapter of it here, with a link to the actual fic. But that's not for a week or two at least. I'm not abandoning you, though. My next fic is already half-written, so if you like Sirius/Remus, check out 'Watching.' Crappy title, I know, but… eh._**


	11. Sequel Announcement

**_Well, children, the first chapter of the sequel is up. It's called, creatively, Take Two: The Boy Who Lived. But first, a response to all the reviews since the last chapter of Boy Who Lived: Take Two!_**

_**Dragon Queen of the Dark Lord: **I hadn't thought about that. It might get addressed in the sequel somewhere, though._

_**sexyteluguchica:** I'm glad you liked it. I hope you'll like the sequel!_

_**Sunny Moonlight: **Sequels are nice, because they don't have to come right after the story. And I needed a break from this story to build up some more ideas. _

_**Avery-Rose-Rain-Slytherin: **Not exactly an update, but definitely good news. The sequel has arrived!_

_**harrypotterfangirl: **Tiger? Is snow leopard close enough?_

_**Suzie: **Excellent! Yay!_

_**Becky Silver Black: **My number one fan! I'm pretty sure that you've given me more reviews than any other reader!_

_**uknowho: **Not too hurried, but I seem to have entertained you while I worked out the sequel._

_**Now, here's a sneak peek at the fic, even though you can just go read the first chapter anyway! **_

Snapshot. A small cottage on the moor. A black-haired, green-eyed boy's sixth birthday party. The other children—his friends from school—had gone home, and the boy happily wrestled with the large black dog that was his godfather. In the background, a man with tawny hair and golden eyes patiently washed ice cream residue off the faces of a pair of impish-looking four-year-olds.

The name of the birthday boy was Harry Potter. He had his father's looks, and his mother's eyes, and his favorite food was chocolate chip ice cream.

_**Curious? Of course you are! Go read the chapter! Remember, Take Two: Boy Who Lived.**_


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